


The Dragon of the Northern Winds

by DualExistence



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Dragons, F/M, Genji is a dragon in the concept of (modern) Taoism, M/M, Other, Writing Exercise, Writing request, but it is not really shippy, gender identity of the reader is up to you, subtle notes of attraction from the reader to Genji, there is the mention of blood/lethal wounds so if you are sensitive to that do not read this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-22
Updated: 2018-10-22
Packaged: 2019-08-06 02:55:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16380077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DualExistence/pseuds/DualExistence
Summary: You didn't know that dragons exist in our world.When you have a fateful encounter with one, your perception of reality changed completely and you found a liking in the man who could shapeshift into an actual dragon.





	The Dragon of the Northern Winds

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kiryuva](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiryuva/gifts).



> This was a small request by kiryuva.tumblr.com 
> 
> This story on tumblr: https://dualexistence.tumblr.com/post/179321103639/the-dragon-of-the-northern-winds

It was one of those nights where you had to spend a bit longer at your project, so you were stuck in the library of your town for an hour more than planned. It was already dark outside and you forgot your coat at home because the day had been surprisingly warm for an October day, but now it had cooled down to the point where your cardigan wasn’t keeping you warm enough and waiting for the bus to get home was a rather unpleasant experience.   


And of all things, the next bus wouldn’t leave in another thirty minutes but the library already had closed down.

  
Trying to find a little distraction from the cold you decided to walk down the street. There was a vending machine at the corner where you perhaps grab some coffee, though it not being really your type of drink it would warm you up a little at least.

The streets were mostly empty at this hour and you were in a quiet, friendly neighbourhood, so you didn’t have to worry much about being alone. Things seemed just like every other day, except when you turned to that alley where you knew the vending machine with the coffee was located, you could hear a noise that did not fit into this quite place.  
You hid behind the corner to the alley, trying to connect the noise you heard with anything you could remember ever having heard, but it doesn’t make sense to you.  
Then you heard someone curse in a language you do not speak, followed by a guy running away from the alley. You waited for a moment to collect your thoughts.  
The noise had died down and you dared to take a look around the corner before approaching the dark area that was barely illuminated by the light of the vending machine to your right.  
  


There was nothing. Or at least you could not see it, but you kept looking as you took out your purse from your handbag to get a few coins to pay for your coffee.  
It rained the hour before you left the library, the ground under your feet still being wet and a small puddle had developed in front of the machine. At least your shoes were made for the weather, you thought as you stepped into the puddle and put the first coin into the machine. Your eyes still wandered to the side, you felt uneasy. But you were alone, weren’t you?  
You put the second coin into the vending machine as you could hear something move in the corner you were so carefully watching just a moment ago; your immediate reaction being to jump away from the machine, your hand on your keys to use them as a weapon if necessary.  
A growl came from the back of the alley and in your shock, you couldn’t move, only watch the darkness.  
From the corner of your eyes, you could see something red mixing with the water in the puddle. Blood?  
  


The growl turned into something remotely resembling of a human voice but you could not understand what it said. You were standing there, frozen in motion, the knuckles of your hand white around your keys.  
The being in the back of the alley shifted, making a pained noise, then it started to speak again.  
“H-help.”  
Something in you made you able to regain control over your body again. You took a step back away from the alley, then took your phone out of your jeans and used it as a flashlight to see what – who – was hiding in the darkness, obviously injured badly.  
There was no reasonable thought behind your decision to stay because what you did was plain dangerous. You could have run, perhaps, since nobody could prove you guilty for leaving – there was no one to be seen except you and the mysterious being.

 

The light of your phone could illuminate the silhouette of something that wasn’t human.  
Green, shimmering scales, wet from the rain and covered in their own blood. The being trembled, and a weak light started to enclose it, shifting its shape into something that resembled the body of a man, dropping to the ground. He was shivering greatly, hid his face behind claw-like hands, the remains of a white shirt being visible under all the blood. It looked like he had been stabbed somewhere.  
“Oh my god” escaped your lips as you tried to approach him, but he immediately told you to stay back.  
“D-don’t look at me,“ he gasped, now trying to cover his face with only one hand and pressing the other over the wound on his stomach. “I don’t want to hurt you.”  
Another pained noise escaped his throat, his hands slowly turned into the shape of human ones again.  
“What… what are you” you asked, not knowing what to do with the situation.  
He ignored your question. “Do you… perhaps have some water, that is all I need to heal- argh”  
He pressed his hand harder against the wound.  
“You are dangerously injured, isn’t it better if I call for help?” you asked, though you weren’t so sure about that – that man was certainly _not_ a normal person, if even human.  
“N-no, just give me some water.”  
He was breathing heavily. A normal person would have probably passed out already from the pain alone, you thought. You still had a bit of water left in the bottle you brought earlier, so you opened your handbag again and reached it, but as you tried to approach the injured again, he yelled at you.  
“I said _stay the fuck back_. Just roll it over.” He seemed pissed off, you decided to blame it on the pain he felt.  
You did as he said and he grabbed it, making you catch a glance of his face. It was scarred, just like his hands. You watched him open the bottle with shaking hands, then taking a sip, another, before downing the rest of it. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and you could not trust your eyes as the blood on the ground slowly started to fade, running back towards his body as if he was turning back in time.  
The shirt that had been in a deep dark red was suddenly white again, the only indicator of the stabbing left was the fine cut in the fabric. He got up from the ground as if it were nothing and ruffled through his own black hair that fell a bit messily into his face.  
“Thank you. I owe you something, I guess.”  
He tossed the empty bottle at you which you could barely catch, stunned from the scene that had just happened before your eyes. Was this just a weird dream?  
  


“What… what are you?”, was all that came over your lips as he walked towards you.  
“What’s your guess” he replied. “Certainly not human, aren’t I? I am used to people calling me a monster, you thinking of me as one wouldn’t matter.”  
“I did _not_ think that.” You defended yourself. “I just saw _something_ turning into a person, _you_ , and then you could heal a _severe_ stab wound by drinking water as if it was nothing. _What_ are you?”  
“A dragon. You saw a dragon.”  
That explained the scales.  
“I have to make sure you do not run around telling everyone about dragons being real, aside from the fact that most people would consider you insane. Just keep what you saw tonight between us, and I will tell you everything you want to know.” He shrugged, then walked past you, hands in the pockets of his black pants.

He seemed to act if it was nothing; like he totally did not shatter your entire perception of the world and it made you feel confused and upset – not to mention that when he stepped into the street light, you could see how attractive he was, which made the whole situation even more difficult for you to progress.  
  


“Are you coming?” he asked after you didn’t move, just standing there frozen in time, trying to handle all the emotions flooding your brain.

“I still want to get my coffee.”  
You had almost forgotten about the coins you had put into the machine and it was still waiting for you to place your order.  
The dragon leaned against the stone wall of the house next to the vending machine, looking across the empty street as you tried to calm down by trying to focus your whole self onto typing the correct number to get your well-deserved coffee. You certainly needed one now after that event.  
  
“Next time you want to grab something to drink, make sure to not go into dark alleys like this one. This place isn’t as safe as it used to be.” He commented as you took the paper cup from the machine. You had completely forgotten about how cold it was as if your body had forgotten about freezing, too.  
“Don’t act like I am stupid.” You said snappishly.  
“You did a lot of stupid things in the past five minutes.” He replied. “I apologise for pointing it out. But you saved my life, so it’s okay.”  
You took a sip from your coffee and walked with him in direction of the bus stop. Did this only happen within five minutes? You decided to check your phone and it turned the dragon wasn’t so far from the truth. Barely seven minutes had passed since you discovered that your bus wouldn’t come any time soon.  
“How… how could you heal yourself with just water?” you decided to ask him, after staying silent for a good moment walking next to him.  
He sighed. “We dragons pull our energy from the flow of nature. The five elements are what we thrive on, and water is an element of healing. I focused my spirit on the water inside my body, by drinking it, I could heal the wound.”  
“It sounds like magic to me.”  
“If you want to call it magic, then it is.”  
  


You tapped with your pinkie against the paper cup, trying to figure out what to ask him next. Another twelve minutes you could ask him questions before you would take the bus back to your normal life. The two of you reached the bus stop and he sat down next to you on the bench. You flinched at the cold metal touching your legs but you tried to act as if it wouldn’t bother you.  
“Cold?” he asked.  
You had the paper cup in both of your hands, trying to take enough warmth from the hot drink into your body but it didn’t help enough. You nodded.  
“Close your eyes,” he said.  
You wanted to ask him why, but as you opened your mouth he told you to not speak a word.  
You felt him touching your forehead with his fingertip, the other hand on your back.  
“Focus on your body, take a deep breath.” He instructed you and you followed.

You felt a comfortable warmth flooding your body the instant you breathed out and he removed his touch from you. It had the resemblance of a warm blanket you would spend the cold winter nights under in front of your grandmother’s chimney, watching the fire dance behind the glass. You opened your eyes and made a surprised gasp as you looked at him.  
“What was that?”  
“Just another one of those ‘magic tricks’ as you call them. If you want to ask me more things, we have ten minutes left.” He answered, this time sounding less serious, even a little playful.  
You cleared your throat and took another sip from the coffee that was now absolutely unnecessary but you decided to drink it anyway, even if you hated the bitter taste.  
“Are all dragons like you? Shape-shifting into humans?” was the next thing that came to your mind.  
He nodded. “It is the easiest way to hide from those who want us dead. There aren’t many of us anymore, so we have to stay hidden.”  
“So… the man who I saw – he didn’t see _me_ – he attacked you because he knew you were a dragon?”  
The dragon kept silent for a moment. “No. He attacked me for another reason, perhaps just wanted the non-existent money that I have on me. But when he attacked me, my disguise as a human was broken. He fled when he saw what I am. For his luck, because an injured dragon is lethal. I cannot control myself as much as I’d want to if I am in danger.”  
His answer made you realise that you could have died if you ignored his request to stay back and it made you feel even more intimidated than you already were. And to be perfectly honest with yourself, there was something intriguing about that, about him.  
You dared yourself to look at him again. His human form were that of an East Asian man, light skin and steel grey eyes that had an intimidating look, his thin lips framed by a neatly groomed beard that was interrupted by thin scars all over his face. It was likely too intimate to ask about the scars, so you brushed that thought aside rather quickly.  
“How… how old are you?”  
“You are staring at my scars.” He countered the question.  
“I am sorry.” You immediately apologised.

“Just pointing it out. It is a bit uncomfortable.”  
“I find you beautiful, though.” What you thought accidentally slipped out of your mouth and you immediately looked away to hide the blood rushing into your cheeks.  
Silence fell over the both of you again.  
“Thirty-five years if you want to know the time spent in a human form.” He answered after a while. “Your bus is coming by the way.”  
He got up from the bench, hands back in his pockets.  
“Thank you again for the help.” He said, about to walk back to wherever he had come from as you got up from the bench as well.  
With your wallet in your hand, trying to find your ticket, you keep looking at him, as he turned his back to you.  
The bus came to halt at the stop and you decide to ask the last question that is lying on your tongue for the whole time but you were too shy to ask. But this was your last chance, and you decided to take it.  
  
“What is your name?”  
He turned back to face you one last time.

“Genji. The Dragon of the Northern Winds.”

 

You entered the bus, your heart and body filled with warmth. _His warmth_.  
You took a seat in the back, next to the window. He was watching the bus, _you_ , leaving. You couldn’t stop staring at him, his gaze locked onto the white vehicle, and as it drove off, you could see him transforming into green stardust, vanishing into the sky.


End file.
